Tabletting, coating & ancillary equipment

'Worst addiction epidemic in US history' sparks call for Hamburg's resignation

25-Sep-2014 By Dan Stanton

An anti-addiction group has called for a change in leadership at the US FDA following the approval of Zohydro and other high-dose opioid analgesics.

Nobel prizes and the world’s top drug: a gallery of Scottish pharma

17-Sep-2014 By Fiona BARRY

On the eve of the historical vote on Scottish independence from the UK tomorrow, we take a look at the pharma inventions Scotland gave the world.

Unilife accelerates expansion to fulfill demand for delivery devices

15-Sep-2014 By Dan Stanton

Unilife has invested in manufacturing capacity for its drug delivery devices ahead of schedule to support the accelerated commercial launch date of its customers' products.

Natoli opens R&D site to study tablet formulation problems

10-Sep-2014 By Fiona BARRY

The Natoli Engineering Company has opened an pharmaceutical research institute to look for answers to enduring formulation problems in solid oral dosage.

‘James bond’-like tech is the end to overdoses, says formulation firm

03-Sep-2014 By Fiona BARRY

Canadian drugmaker Intellipharmaceutics has developed a kill-switch formulation it says will prevent drug misuse and accidental overdoses.

Find other oral forms for tablet-hating patients, drugmakers told

02-Sep-2014 By Fiona BARRY

Pharma firms must provide imaginative solid dosage alternatives to tablets and capsules, says research claiming more than half of patients have problems swallowing traditional pills.

AstraZeneca coughs up $875m for Almirall to support asthma/COPD pipeline

04-Aug-2014 By Dan Stanton

AstraZeneca has bolstered its respiratory portfolio and added new bronchodilator technologies through the $875m (€650m) acquisition of Almirall.

Anti-addiction film resilient to generics, says Reckitt Benckiser

29-Jul-2014 By Dan Stanton

Reckitt Benckiser’ opioid addiction drug Suboxone delivered by sublingual film has shown a 'surprising' level of resilience against generic competition, the firm says as it plans to spin-out its pharmaceutical business.

Generics: change in pill shape makes patients 66% more likely to quit

23-Jul-2014 By Fiona Barry

Switching patients to generic pills of a different shape and colour increases the chances they will end their course of medicine early, according to research.

Aesica adds roller compaction unit in growing German market

10-Jul-2014 By Zachary Brennan

CDMO Aesica Pharmaceuticals is adding additional services to its Zwickau, Germany oral solids capabilities, including a new roller compaction unit for dry granulation production.

Priority Review for Purdue’s anti-abuse hydrocodone

09-Jul-2014 By Fiona Barry

The US FDA has granted Priority Review Designation to Purdue Pharma’s hydrocodone bitartrate tablet which has abuse-deterrent technology.

M+W sells automation biz to ATS for $350m

08-Jul-2014 By Dan Stanton

M+W says a lack of synergies with its engineering and construction business drove the decision to sell its automation divison to ATS for €255m ($348m).

Zogenix adds abuse deterrents to Zohydro painkiller

03-Jul-2014 By Fiona Barry

Zogenix has modified its much-debated painkiller Zohydro with abuse-deterrent formulations.

China demands ‘famous brand’ suppliers and added value, says Romaco

30-Jun-2014 By Fiona Barry

Chinese pharma is looking for added value and “famous brands” from its processing providers, the tableting and packaging supplier Romaco has said. 

Copley develops new testing techs for generic respiratory drugs

24-Jun-2014 By Staff Reporter

Copley Scientific has launched new technologies to help developers of generic inhalable drugs stick to specific testing guidelines issued by the US FDA and USP. 

Fette launches new press for commercial-scale production

17-Jun-2014 By staff reporter

Fette Compacting America claims its new tablet press technology can accelerate the production of large drug batches.

Capsugel: New bioavailability enhancing capacity to fufill non-GMP demand

05-Jun-2014 By Dan Stanton

Capsugel has installed a commercial-scale dryer in its recently acquired Bend Research R&D facility, citing a rise in demand for non-GMP spray dried dispersion (SDD) services.

3M to expand metered dose inhaler production at UK site

28-May-2014 By Anthony King

3M Drug Delivery Systems says it will boost capacity for its metered dose inhaler (MDI) division by more than 20 percent at its Loughborough, UK site.

Unilife reports 'strong quarter' despite no revenue from products

14-May-2014 By Dan Stanton

Unilife says it is confident future revenue from current contracts could total $1bn and is scaling up manufacturing capacities despite no product sales in the third quarter.

Emerging excipient markets to outpace Western markets, report says

30-Apr-2014 By Zachary Brennan

Experts have predicted emerging Indian and Chinese markets will outpace Western markets as the $2.3bn oral solid dosage form (OSDF) excipients global market grows at a sustainable rate.

'No longer simply a capsule provider' - Capsugel wins oral peptide contract

29-Apr-2014 By Dan Stanton

Capsugel is no longer a simple capsule provider but a differentiated player in the CDMO industry, the firm says as it wins a scale-up manufacturing contract for Chiasma and Roche’s oral octreotide candidate.

Swiss gold delivers hope as carrier for cancer drugs

29-Apr-2014 By Anthony King

Researchers in Switzerland have devised a form of gold nanoparticle that shows promise as a weapon against tumours and as a delivery vehicle for drugs.

Merck & Co. contracts Catalent to make sublingual hayfever drugs

23-Apr-2014 By Dan Stanton

MSD has selected Catalent to manufacture two recently approved sublingual pollen extract drugs using its Zydis formulation platform.

Acura pays Pfizer $2m to buy back anti-abuse tech and relaunch Oxecta drug

15-Apr-2014 By Dan Stanton

Acura has reacquired the rights to its opioid abuse-deterrent technology from Pfizer and is looking for pharma partners to relaunch its oxycodone HCL drug Oxecta.

Molecular Profiles' investment makes HME (bio)available for clients

08-Apr-2014 By Dan Stanton

Molecular Profiles has invested in hot melt extrusion (HME) and nano milling capabilities citing client demand for improving the bioavailablity of drugs.

US FDA issues new bioavailability guidelines

25-Mar-2014 By Dan Stanton

The US FDA has published guidance of how sponsors should best document the bioavailability of products for investigational new drug applications (INDs) and new drug applications (NDAs).

Bioavailability Breakthrough: Aegis’ enhancement tech works in pill form

19-Mar-2014 By Staff Reporter

Aegis Therapeutics claims a technology developed to improve the bioavailability of drugs delivered through the nose has a similar solubility enhancement effect in a solid dosage form.

US FDA calls for annual reports of postapproval manufacturing changes

06-Mar-2014 By Zachary Brennan

The US FDA has released draft guidance on how post-approval manufacturing changes should be reported in annual reports.

Anti-addiction formulation of super-strong opioid unclear

05-Mar-2014 By Fiona Barry

Addiction doctors have petitioned the US FDA to prevent Zohydro ER, the first single-entity hydrocodone painkiller, hitting the market this month citing its potential for abuse. Its maker, Zogenix, has been tight-lipped on whether the drug’s formulation...

FDA re-evaluates 5-year NCE exclusivity to incentivize development of fixed-combo products

25-Feb-2014 By Zachary Brennan

The US FDA on Monday announced in a draft guidance that it’s revising its historical interpretation of the 5-year NCE exclusivity provisions to further incentivize the development of certain fixed-combination products. 

Insulin pill tech can be used more widely says Oramed

18-Feb-2014 By Gareth Macdonald

Debate rages over the significance of safety data from a trial of Oramed’s oral insulin pill, but the firm is still confident in its delivery technology.

Gold ‘nanoshells’ may offer new delivery option for cancer, hypothermia drugs

17-Feb-2014 By Zachary Brennan

A new study published in the Institute of Physics Science reveals that Chinese researchers have developed gold nanoparticles that may help deliver cancer treatments to specifically targeted cells.

Pfizer, Lilly and other giants team up to fight counterfeits

30-Jan-2014 By Fiona Barry

Big pharma rivals are joining forces to pursue a new generation of sophisticated counterfeiters, according to Pfizer and Eli Lilly.

Lilly backs track-and-trace and commits $102m to fight counterfeits

22-Jan-2014 By Fiona BARRY

Eli Lilly is spending €75m ($102m) to meet latest global anti-counterfeiting regulations, its security experts said in an exclusive interview with in-Pharmatechnologist.com.

Benchtop mass spec tech could offset low biopharma demand for Waters

15-Jan-2014 By Dan Stanton

Subdued demand from Biopharma for its chromatography equipment could be reversed by its benchtop mass spectrometry technology, Waters says.

Merck Millipore sells its discovery and development service biz to Eurofins

09-Jan-2014 By Dan Stanton

Merck Millipore has sold its Discovery and Development Solutions (DDS) Business to Eurofins saying it was unable to fully support.

BASF becomes an excipact certified excipient maker

08-Jan-2014

Excipient production at a BASF plant in Lugwigshafen, Germany has been deemed to meet standards set out under the excipact certification scheme.

Endo gains battery powered transdermal patch tech in $105m acquisition

17-Dec-2013 By Dan Stanton

Endo has obtained NuPathe’s transdermal migraine patch and its iontophoresis drug delivery technology as part of the $105m (€76m) acquisition.

Ideal Cures launches Instacoat Lab app at CPhI India

04-Dec-2013

Ideal Cures has launched a new mobile phone ‘app’ designed to help customers make better use of its range of coating products.

update

Evonik to raise excipient prices 10% in 2014 citing 'costs'

07-Nov-2013 By Gareth Macdonald

Evonik Industries has announced plans to increase what it charges for excipients used in modified release formulations next year, citing rising costs.

News from CPhI

Second generation HPMC excipient can cut costs by 60%, says Dow

05-Nov-2013 By Dan Stanton

A new tableting excipient eliminates the need for wet granulation and saves up to 60% on overall manufacturing costs according to developer Dow.

Colorcon calls on Evonik to help sell delayed-release tech

15-Oct-2013 By Gareth Macdonald

Colorcon has called on Evonik Industries to help it sell a co-developed, delayed release pill coating technology.

Catalent's Brazilian acquisition supports global softgel strategy

10-Oct-2013 By Dan Stanton

Catalent has continued its softgel expansion in emerging markets with the acquisition of Relthy Laboratórios in Brazil.

Pfizer teams with GEA and G-CON to 'transform' oral solid dose industry

26-Sep-2013 By Dan Stanton

A collaboration to develop portable, flexible and continuous processing systems has the potential to transform oral solid dose (OSD) manufacturing, according to Pfizer, GEA and G-CON.

PTI 'Polishes-Up' Tablet Dedusting with Pharmaflex 750

24-Sep-2013 By Dan Stanton

Pharma Technology Inc. (PTI) says its new deduster offers tablet manufacturers more flexibility with greater residual powder being removed due to its polymer spiral.

Edible Silica Microtags: Eating Away at Counterfeit Drugs

09-Sep-2013 By Zachary Brennan

Pharma manufacturers may turn to a new technology -- edible microtags -- as way to help manufacturers root out counterfeit drugs and protect patients.

Aoxing's Sales Soar After "Capsule Fiasco" Almost Ruined Company

27-Aug-2013 By Dan Stanton

Aoxing Pharmaceuticals reported increased sales and lower operating expenses for Q2 2013 one year on from the chromatin-tainted gelatin scandal that led to suspension of sales by China’s regulators.

Indian Generics Sector Growth Drives Manufacturing Innovation, says IBEF

20-Aug-2013

Growth of the generics sector in India is driving innovation among drug manufacturers according to a Government and Industry backed report.

Spin Off OTC Unit in Pharmstandard's Vision as it Buys API Supplier

14-Aug-2013 By Dan Stanton

Pharmstandard says the acquisition of Bever Pharmaceuticals will lower the cost of its API supply as it plans to spin out an OTC business.

Adamis Looks to Dry Powder Inhaler Tech Following $3m License From 3M

12-Aug-2013 By Dan Stanton

The licensing and potential purchase of the Taper Dry Powder Inhaler (DPI) technology from 3M complements Adamis’ portfolio and future formulation expansion, Adamis says.